Abstract
Climate change is a global issue, where action is apportioned to nation-states. Aotearoa/New Zealand (Ao/NZ) holds a unique position for an OECD country in terms of global climate change emissions. Although it contributes only 0.17 per cent to the global emissions budget, on a per capita basis, Ao/NZ is the fifth highest emitter. What adds to this unique position, is that 84.8 per cent of electricity in Ao/NZ is sourced from renewable sources, which means there are few options for change within this sector. In contrast and unlike other OECD countries, agriculture accounts for almost half the country’s gross emissions, at 47.8 per cent, making it the largest emitting sector in the country. Methane, a greenhouse gas which has a warming potential 120 times that of carbon dioxide, accounts for 73.1 per cent of the total emissions from the agriculture sector. Yet at this time, there lacks viable mitigation strategies available to adopt on-farm, which will reduce emissions without also reducing farm productivity. What adds to this, is that the primary sector (of which agriculture is a leading contributor) contributes around 8 per cent of Ao/NZ’s real GDP, and just over half of Ao/NZ’s total export earnings. These factors together highlight how complicated and highly politicised debates about how to reduce emissions from the agricultural sector are.
As a consequence of these complexities, agriculture has, until recently, been relatively protected from regulation that forces them to account for and reduce their emissions. The introduction of the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Act 2019 (ZCA), has now prescribed a phased approach to including agriculture in domestic schemes to reduce gross methane emissions in Ao/NZ. However, the agriculture sector remains disengaged with climate change action, including emissions mitigation on-farm. This research therefore aims to understand this lack of farmer engagement, and highlight the main challenges facing the sector in their response to climate change. The study adopted a political ecology approach, that considers the present power relations, and how these can be mediated in order to encourage positive change. Within this framework and drawing on interviews with eight stakeholders and six farmers, the research had three main findings. First, it was found that there is a broad disconnect between the Government and the agriculture sector. Second, it is the perceived lack of capacity to act that is fuelling farmers lack of engagement with mitigation mechanisms. Third, increased education and suitable information sharing provides the leading opportunity for increased farmer engagement. In conclusion, it was found that farmers feel marginalised in a conversation that directly effects them. Through a greater engagement with farmers, action towards mitigating greenhouse gases on-farm can be accelerated.